This Blog begins when I realize that more than a decade has passed since the birth of Instagram and how throughout these years we have painted hundreds, thousands and millions of stories of achievements, challenges and growth milestones.
It is curious to see how a round and square icon keeps a grid of what we are: successes, memories, failures, facts. An icon, username and profile that became the trunk of our stories, in the record of our moments, in the lifestyle and type of consumption that we have.
So for this opportunity I considered bringing you answers to the most common questions you may ask yourself :
- What is it? What is your story? What is its impact?
- How does Instagram work? Let's talk about your algorithm
- Why should you learn to use this platform?
- How to use Instagram in your company? Step by step with examples
- Useful tools and features
- Who is Instagram good for?
- What things you can or should not do on Instagram?
- Tips extras
But, we will not be alone throughout the reading. This content has the company of teachers who, through their opinions, will help you understand very well why IG, Insta or Instagram remains at the top of the most used social networks in the world.
A social platform that creates visibility and stimulates growth deserves our attention, so let's get started!
What is Instagram?
A question that sounds simple but at the same time challenging due to the mutation that this social network has undergone.
If we focus on the simple answer, Instagram is one more application to download to your cell phone. At the same time, it is a social network that allows you to post your favorite photos and videos and that over time became a means of communication.
In my concept, describing Instagram implies various feelings .
On the one hand, there is always nostalgia to see how it has evolved in its first decade of consumption. It has been allowed to mold and make its characteristics more flexible according to what its users have considered to have.
On the other hand, it is astonishing to see the power it achieved to promote entertainment, activism, a lifestyle according to tastes at the end, and the commercial opportunity for thousands of companies and ventures that see it as mandatory to open a profile in the app.
But, I believe that this platform achieved a feeling that we talked about and had not felt: influence.
We had gone through Facebook and the possibility of connecting with friends . Then Twitter gave prominence to authoritative voices on various topics.
And with the increase in the consumption of videos on YouTube, we have learned that any question we have can be solved with a tutorial and the limits to learn are minimal.
However, Instagram gave access, impulse, detonation and vehemence to what we know today as Influencer Marketing or the world of Influencers .
But I want us to deepen this point as we read on.
To close this first part of the definition, I want my opinion not to be the only one you take with you. Let's take advantage of this moment to make visible the criteria of one of our guest teachers.
According to Laura Figueroa, strategist and consultant in Digital Marketing in Venezuela and Mexico, who has more than 74K followers in @laura_figueroab and is Co Founder of @thefigco_es , Instagram is today:
- A platform that has everything a business needs to connect, interact and convert its audience.
- It is differential from TikTok and allows you to go further (so it may not seem like it).
- It is a platform that becomes the most immediate service channel for your company.
- It allows you to create and grow naturally.
Here is his full answer:
History
Let's do some memory…
Did you know that Instagram wasn't always Instagram? When nobody knew about this app, in 2010, its founders called it Burbn . A completely different name from what the industry it belongs to is now.
It often happens that many of the platforms that we know of successfully, initially did not have a renowned identification. But, as a curious fact, in the case of Insta, its original name (Burbn) is due to an app with the name of a glass of whiskey .
The initial idea of its creators, Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger , was to offer a check-in app to indicate where you had been. As an added value you could upload a geolocated photo, but it was not the primary action.
What happened? The app was very confusing to use. It was zero friendly and intuitive for the user:
[Caption] This photo taken by pg-designs.ca shows the original Burbn design.
Noticing what was happening, Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger took the right alert and identified the potent: user-taken photos with location. Something very captivating in an era where we already felt closer to cell phones and had gone from the days of family albums to digital photo folders.
And precisely, at this point, I want us to turn to our second guest teacher: Phil González , digital communication expert, lecturer, writer, teacher and creator in 2011 of the largest community of Instagram fans in the world: Instagramers .
Phil, who has more than 239K followers on his IG ( @philgonzalez ) and is the author of the book: “Instagram and all its secrets” , reviews very precisely in this book how the founders did not have to think much about a storytelling or “invent the wheel again.
A couple of changes and internalization was enough to take the right path.
The funny thing is that, according to Phil, the success of the app in the early years was thanks to the girlfriend of the co-founder Kevin, who suggested they include a series of "vintage" filters (that is, in retro style) to edit the photos.
How wonderful!
Insta is a path of milestones, because before starting its creation, Kevin rejected a striking job offer made by Mark Zuckeberg to work together on the beginnings of Facebook, but being a Twitter intern decided to apply the knowledge gained in his app.
Decision that turned out to be more profitable. Well, two years later, Mark Zuckeberg bought it for a billion dollars and… guess… who was an investor in Instagram at the time? Jack Dorsey , founder of Twitter!
What madness!
To close part of the Instagram story, I want you to know some of the illustrations in the book: "Instagram and all its secrets" , celebrating 10 years of history in 2020:
Impact
Let's move on to one of my favorite parts, “the numerology” of social media.
I like to review this part because it details, analyzes and explains the impact that Instagram has had over time.
Despite the arrival of Snapchat, Douyin and/or TikTok, the path that Instagram has traveled allows it to win the 
crown as one of the most popular social networks of all time.
Let's see the detail according to the Digital Report 2022 of We Are Social and Hootsuite:
- In 2022 Instagram was ranked in the Top 5 most used social platforms:
- The platform has more than 80% use of the app. An average higher than that of networks such as Facebook, YouTube and WhatsApp. Although, its close competitiveness to TikTok is notorious:
- In addition, it is the second favorite social platform worldwide:
- According to Statista , Instagram's monthly active users in 2022 are close to 1,270 million, generating an increase of close to 20 million users compared to estimates in 2021.
- Instagram's audience is distributed between a 49.3% female audience and a 50.7% female audience. With an advertising focus on ages between 18 and 34 years.
Below is a summary of the most representative numbers of this network:
As the book “Instagram and all its secrets” points out , this app marked a revolution in an era of accelerated consumption. Tired of "the social network for Dads and Uncles" (Facebook) or the "social network for fake news" (Twitter), IG promoted the generation of selfies or challengers.
How Instagram works: its algorithm
Now that we've gone through the what is, let's tackle the how. Let's talk about the how of Instagram and illustrate how it works .
Of course, it is important to make a clarification. Although Instagram is an application to install on your cell phone and its original version was not designed for the web version and Android operating systems, this app is still a social network and works through an algorithm .
Its implementation is also through programming rules that indicate what, how, when and to whom and the issuance of a new publication. This is what I mean when I talk about algorithm.
Think of any board game you like. As an example I will use the famous card game "Uno" . In order to start a game, it is necessary to know the rules of the game.
With that. Knowing what does and does not make sense to hit, there is a greater chance of achieving the goal. In the case of the game: win. In the case of Instagram: grow your audience.
So, what is the Instagram algorithm?:
- First of all, Insta takes into account your degree of interest in the accounts you follow. To the extent that you consult their profiles or use the search engine for related topics or interests, the platform will give more relevant interest .
- As a second measure, constancy rewards . If you are a good content generator and you stay active on Instagram, the app will take you into account in the so-called "organic reach" .
- And, precisely, we move on to the third measure: organic reach . Initially, it was clear that for every 100 followers, 100% of them naturally saw the posts, but, as other scenarios arrived (stories, rells), this reach began to spread and fell from 30% to 40. % over 100% (of every 100 followers, 30 to 40 see it).
- But, as a fourth measure, Instagram is facing advertising reach . After the purchase made by Zuckerberg. The same reach was distributed in the commercial purposes that the app has, so on average the natural reach of any account is from 5% to 20%.
However, as in any game, certain rules work in your favor and others don't. Growth on Instagram is important, however, as you have more audience , your reach will decrease.
Basically the same % of reach sharing will address a larger and larger community.
Instagram Stories
The truth is that if. Facebook continues to be the authority on social platforms and is always looking for ways to continue dominating the Tech Industry.
But why are we talking about Facebook or Meta?
Because the reality is that Instagram Stories was born as a response to the good acceptance of Snapchat . You had to find a way to counteract the use of this app, and well, getting the talent for a new interface was the way to go.
At the time Zuckerberg tried to buy Snapchat for a little over 9,000 million dollars . However, this offer was not achieved.
So, in August 2016, Facebook together with its development team took on the task of releasing their own version of instant moments or stories with a duration of 24 hours, increasing interaction.
One year later, the results:
- In October 2016 they reached 100 million daily users .
- The ads, after arriving in January 2017, added 150 million daily active users.
- In March 2017, more than 200 million daily active users were exceeded.
- And in May of that same year, achieved! Instagram got 250 million users.
Instagram Direct
Similar case happened with Instagram Direct. The popular movement of WhatsApp Messenger and WeChat gave life to the democratization of instant messaging in this app.
How did this new feature come about?
In 2013, December to be exact, the app welcomed the feature that allows users to chat privately.
Privacy turns out to be a value promise . Users can send messages, photos, videos or audios as long as they follow each other. If not, users receive the message but it is marked as pending, a request to be accepted.
Since 2016, an update allows users to have the option to set messages as a temporary file . By 2017, Instagram Direct was already available for Instagram Web.
Now, 9 years after its launch, users can also respond in text, emoji, or by clicking an icon with reactions, Facebook-style.
Why should you learn to use Instagram in your Business?
At this point I know that some numbers have caught your attention and that the fact that your audience is on Instagram is already the first answer to why you see value for your Business on this platform.
But. I want to take advantage of our reading teacher, Phil González , to share with you a good story that is included in his book and that can exemplify and inspire you to continue.
The case of Nata Moreno, @natamorenodirige
In the book, Nata Moreno's story is titled "My courtship with Instagram." Nata is a film director, winner of the Goya and the 2020 Forqué Award for Best Feature Documentary.
Her first date with Instagram begins when she relives an episode of her life, where a friend tells her that she has discovered a very “cool” musician and that she was able to see how the years have passed him. Then, Nata became concerned and asked where or how she discovered it.
The answer: in the application where you can see photos of "the life of the club" , Instagram.
It seemed ridiculous to him to think of people using the Internet to "gossip" others. Her friend suggested opening an account, and she, with everything she was going through at that moment (new life, maternity, professional changes) and with the thought that this app made no sense, she accepted.
She ended the conversation with her friend by promising that tonight she would check the app, her new profile and the first photo she posted.
What reaction did Nata Moreno have at night? Complete surprise!
The film director questioned why she didn't know about the app , why doctors don't prescribe a look at it, where was she when it all started.
Natalia's reality is that, in her own words, she had been able to: fly over Africa with the elephants, enter Madonna's kitchen, be in Frida Kahlo's garden at the Casa Azul, but, above all, start exchanging opinions with communities that somehow shared the same tastes, interests, desires and needs.
(This date ended very well)
How does @natamorenodirige use her profile?
After being amazed at the power of the app, Natalia began a relationship with Insta. She now she usually posts week after week.
It is a moment of creativity and intimacy . Select a good place to photograph, share the feelings that fill her that day. And he fills his profile with positive and negative reactions, from human voices .
A whole personal brand!
What is Nata Moreno's opinion of Instagram?
As she comments in the book, Insta is for her:
- “A wild tool for personal and professional expansion…”.
- "I take it like I'm going to shoot a fancy ad or write a column for a magazine."
- “… So thank you Insta for broadening my horizons! ”.
How to use Instagram step by step with examples
Let's continue hand in hand with Phil González. His book "Instagram and all its secrets" is really a whole toolbox to know how to use Insta, step by step. Chapter one gives you the guide to get started.
The first thing, as Phil says, is to start like when you have a new day. Start your IG profile "on the right foot" , with time. Take a couple of minutes and answer the questions:
- Who I am?
- What do I want to do on Instagram?
- Who do I want to be on Instagram?
After that start customizing your account on the network. Within the configuration menu, answer the previous questions by selecting the type of account you will have: user, creator or company (as a personal or business brand, the last two will be appropriate).
Very good! The other configurations will depend on the fields per country to be completed and filled in with real data and to which you have continuous and secure access.
The important thing, compared to editing your profile, is to unite the answers to the initial questions in a profile description that indicates your differential value, what you will do and what the next step will be for the users.
Let's see it with this example, our @rdstat i onespanol account :
Now, to maintain an impeccable presence, close and that generates memory in your community, create featured Stories: “whatever you have decided to keep forever in folders that you will organize”, as Phil says.
In some cases you can also highlight 3 posts (for certain countries the icon appears 
on the first 3 posts) , with this, the key content at a certain moment will have the priority you are looking for to communicate it.
Let me show you an example from the @elespectador account :
And what will follow, after configuring, editing and customizing is to start publishing: with strategy and perseverance . Think that this grid is a canvas, and that in each box you are going to fix the key pieces or parts of your painting that help you meet objectives such as:
- Attract
- Inform
- spread
- Entertain
Yes, we know you want to sell, but don't make this action in your marketing funnel the priority. Apply the famous Pareto principle: 80/20 : 80% of your results come from 20% of your efforts.
Allow Instagram to fulfill its mission as a channel for attracting new audiences and potential customers, keep it as a communication channel and make it an initial part of your audience's purchasing journey, as a support for great methodologies such as inbound marketing .
I really like this example from @laikamascotas :
So the next thing to do to use Instagram as it is and have an optimized profile is:
1. Create an engaging Bio:
The first impression always counts. Many accounts do not take seriously this part that is fundamental. They wonder why they don't contact them and when checking there is no link in the Bio.
They indicate that the audience they have is not the correct one and when reviewing the description of their profile and the hashtags they use, it is not clear what they are and what types of interests they are targeting.
And, as if it were a "nightmare", they want the account to be crawled by Google, but their profile url is not public or friendly.
2. Open your Bio to everyone, including retractors:
The email account as an offline service channel cannot be yours, the profile creation account and therefore the recovery account. Create an account to attend to your followers, including those who have some discomfort.
By the way, you will shield your profile with good cybersecurity practices to protect yourself from a hacker.
3. Have a link to the next step:
Yeah. As we mentioned above it is essential.
This optimization can be activated from a Marketing CRM, such as RD Station Marketing, where you can create your Bio link on Instagram and customize each of the action buttons, or from open source tools such as Linktr.ee and connect with other apps .
The important thing here is to identify very well the priority steps that will need to be done and what calls to action (calls to action) are the objectives. Have a short url, that is easy to read and with an Emoji so that it is attractive to click.
4. Differentiate professional from personal life:
Define what the tone, intentions and language of your Brand will do in social networks, that includes Instagram, seriously 
.
For this definition, use the following table made in the Platzi Academic Platform:
Who is Instagram good for?
I like this question because Instagram has allowed hundreds of businesses to start their business model and have a minimum viable version of a product or service to validate in the market and find out if it is what they need.
It could be said that Instagram works for any company. However, and with the aim that your steps are always as strategic as possible, in my opinion IG is designed to:
- Creators of educational, entertainment, commercial content.
- Producers or marketers of gastronomy or local restaurants.
- tourism generators.
- Photographers.
- Graphic and audiovisual designers.
- Marketing of products to provide a detail or celebrate a special date.
- Filmmakers, producers, actors.
- Referents of certain markets or influencers.
- Architects or lovers of good structures and places.
It may be that I am missing something important, but the key is to know if your target audience is on Instagram . If it really is a fundamental or niche channel that you will find growth in.
What things you can or should not do on Instagram?
Whom! I no longer know which question is more interesting to me ( 
)
While the audience is very clear to you, the next step will be to find key strategies to grow your audience quickly. I asked Laura Figueroa about this point , who has more than 74K followers at @laura_figueroab and here is her answer:
Best Instagram Tools
During the conversation with Laura Figueroa we commented on which native Instagram tools or not, lead us to long-term growth . This point was very interesting because she told us that:
- Instagram has openly mentioned that it does and does not elevate your audience potential and attention. Without a doubt, the Reels are the jewel in the crown . Today it is worth thinking about tools to create and optimize them and not just think about making stories.
It may be useful for you to read: 3 Definitive Apps to download Instagram Reels and not let them escape you .
- Using the same Reels as a post or publication on the profile is a good resource. Through the "Explore" option we can count on a couple of possibilities of growth, because according to the interests of the users, Instagram gives us a chance to appear.
- Did you know…? No wait, this point is better told by Laura:
- So. Based on the above (which left my mind like this:
), other useful tools for you may be:
Rytr.me , to create eye-catching copy.
Canva , for creating compelling video posts or graphics.
HappyScribe , for videos with subtitles.
Business Manager or Business Manager of Facebook Ads , for advertising campaigns on Instagram.
Natively, depending on your country, a tool that is little explored is the generation of money with Instagram , but there are not many details about it, so for now it is not on the list.
final tips
Following the line of tools that can help you, as a first tip we recommend you read the following related Blogs:
- How to take care of the management of your company's social networks
- How to use the Instagram Reels resource
- 7 tips to gain followers on your company's Instagram profile
Then. As a second tip, we take advantage of asking Laura what we should do as a Personal Brand or Business Brand. Here their comments:
- Publishing consistently works .
- It's good to be present and if for some reason you must take a break, don't let it be more than a week.
- It works to generate conversation .
- It is important to appear naturally and authentically. Incorporate storytelling.
- Avoid reducing your publications to the minimum (1 time per week).
- Don't sell directly and all the time, it's uncomfortable.
- Do not have a presence without a Marketing plan.
This is done! Now to create, paint and take off
